monarch

When the Duke of Alva entered the room, the first thing he saw was the overturned chair. It was obvious that the conversation between father and son just now was not pleasant, if not explosive.

He lifted the chair up, patted the dust on the velvet satin of the chair cushion, and sat down on it.

"He is as stubborn as I was when I was young." Charles V did not turn to the Duke of Alva, but his eyes remained on the painting "Venus of Urbino" by Titian on the opposite wall. ", the goddess of love in the canvas is completely naked, looking at the old emperor with provocative eyes, and the faint smile at the corner of his mouth now seems to be full of irony.

"Experience takes time to accumulate." Duke Alva replied.

"But the most precious thing now is time." Charles V looked up at the undecorated gray ceiling, "Whether it is for me, for you, for him or for Spain, it is the same."

"I hope I can buy time for this country." Duke Alva said, "Spain is plagued by many diseases, and the treatment of headache doctors is just prolonging her time in the hospital bed, and the final outcome will not change. ...Only with a strong dose of medicine can the kingdom's body win the time for her to continue to heal itself."

"But for a weak patient, maybe a strong dose of medicine can kill him." Charles V held both hands tightly, and the Duke of Alva could see that the old man was trying his best to conceal his uneasiness. "Are you sure you're taking the right medicine?"

"I hope so." Duke Alva said, "But the effect of the medicine will not be known until the medicine is used up... But it is better than doing nothing anyway."

The emperor took out a small glass hourglass from his arms. He flipped the small glass ornament over, watching the golden quicksand inside the bottle tumbling with fascination.

"It may be only a few months or a few days that determines the fate of a country for hundreds of years." He watched the last grain of sand flow in the hourglass, "If you take London before October, Spain will be The splendor can last for another two centuries, but if it drags on until November, the wind changes direction..."

He flipped the hourglass over again, "Then it's all over."

Duke Alva nodded and straightened his waist.

"I just asked Philip what he plans to do if the invasion fails." Charles V put the hourglass back into his arms, "He hasn't thought about it at all, or he doesn't want to think about it... When a person starts to think I'm afraid his hands will start to shake when he bets on the table when he thinks about the possibility of failure."

"Once this invasion fails, political disasters will be more terrifying than military disasters." The emperor's eyes became more serious, "It is not gold and troops that maintain hegemony, but a kind of power that is rooted in people's hearts. The belief that our enemies believe that this country can do whatever she wants, and that the only way to fight her is to be crushed! To be defeated by one's own challenger is like an old lion being defeated by a new lion king Driven out of the pride of lions, even hyenas and vultures will come up to bite its remains."

"When our enemies perceive our weakness, their repressed ambitions will burst out like spring torrents, and then we will face countless Netherlands, each nation will demand its own Independence, every country wants to take a bite out of us. Prestige is the most precious wealth of a country. It takes generations to spend countless gold and blood to accumulate, but it may only take one afternoon to lose it all... …When we lose our prestige, nobody takes what we say seriously anymore.”

"But our prestige is just a bubble, and it will burst with a light poke. The bubble is getting bigger and bigger, but it also means that it is becoming more and more fragile...even as long as we wait another one to two years, it will burst." It will break on its own." Duke Alva said, "Maintaining Spain's hegemony requires money, and we have no money, Your Majesty."

"So it's all about gold in the end." The emperor laughed, his sallow face was exactly the color of florin gold coins in the eyes of the Duke of Alva, "the gold mines in America make us think we have Mida Countless wealth has been squandered on senseless wars and luxurious life...Countless gold has flowed through our hands into the wallets of our enemies, while our own treasury is empty , What a punishment from God!"

"If God does not bless Spain..." the Duke of Alva said bitterly, "then I would suggest that His Majesty, like a gecko, decisively abandon his tail to survive. If Spain is destined to become a second-rate country, then we'd better accept the reality early , and let the country adapt to her new status as soon as possible, instead of trying to hold up the pomp like a fallen aristocrat."

"Once Britain defeats us, the Netherlands is doomed to fail. It is a dead move for the Flanders Legion to stay there. It is better to use this elite army elsewhere-the French will definitely take advantage of it. We need this army. The army comes to defend Spain, and the Netherlands is left to the Britons, the Netherlands, or whoever, and let them fight for that kingdom."

"And what about Italy? What about Germany?" asked the emperor.

"Italy can't keep [-]%." The Duke of Alva shook his head sadly, "The northern city-states will fall into the arms of the French, and the Pope is used to playing around with the wind. The southern Kingdom of Naples has nothing to offer. It is better to simply give up and let the Italians Go fight the French, that's their trouble."

"As for Germany, we have no time to care about things there... The Turks are determined to win Vienna, 'God help those who help themselves', and if Emperor Ferdinand cannot save himself, then no one can help him. As for the German princes, They have always opposed your family's rule, and now they are benevolent, and the Turks will tell them that in the eyes of the Ottoman Empire, both Catholics and Protestants are dirty heretics, and they don't care about a Communion or not! If they don't want peace under Spain, let them taste war."

"Maybe the Turkish army will hit the Rhine and the Alps." Emperor Charles V said worriedly.

"That would be even better." The Duke of Alva sneered, "France claims to be the eldest daughter of Catholicism, isn't it time for them to behave? We have been the guardians of the Christian world for too long. Since the French continue to give Let's break the stage, let them come on stage and let them stop the Turks, I want to see if they can do better than us... With them standing between us and the Turks, we can rest easy. "

"As for Britain, if we win, she will no longer be a threat; if we lose, then we will negotiate with them immediately. We have no ability to rule those overseas colonies. If the British are willing to help us maintain the empire, then they You can get the corresponding remuneration, what colonies they want, as long as the bid is right, everything can be negotiated... The same is true for European territories, Italy, the Netherlands, these can be listed for sale, we are already bankrupt, a bankrupt family? Can we still cling to our belongings and not sell them? If we are going to lose those territories anyway, then we might as well sell them for a good price while they are still in our hands."

The emperor let out a long sigh, and he slumped on the chair, as if his last vitality had been completely lost following Duke Alva's words.

"Twenty years before I was born, Spain was just a backwater on the western edge of Europe, and when I ascended her throne, this country had become the most powerful country in Europe, and now only 20 years later, she seems She has to go back to her previous position... the ups and downs, the ups and downs, one after another, but it's just a few decades of effort, it's really a dream!"

"Isn't it true of all the great empires of all ages?" replied the Duke of Alva. "Where are the empires of Cyrus, Alexander, and Caesar now? Assyria, Babylon, and Egypt, with their great palaces, temples, and monuments , and all that remains are ruins in the sand. This is the fate of Spain, and it will be their fate someday, too, if the Britons take our place as overlords... But at least history will record, in your Spain has reached the pinnacle of her splendor under your rule, and your name will be forever extolled along with those of those great ancient kings, what more can one expect from a mortal?"

"Yes." The emperor's voice was full of sourness, "Even if he once had everything, he is still a mortal...Everything is like quicksand between fingers, even the king cannot grasp it..."

His voice became softer and softer, and finally turned into a raving that he could only hear.

"Your plan is very wise." After more than a minute, Charles V broke the silence again, "The only question is, do you think Philip will listen to you? According to my experience, a loser A gambler with a good eye will not end until he loses all his chips."

"When a ship goes down, the captain should go down with it," said the Duke of Alva. "If it is so, I accept my fate."

"You are not the king, you are not the captain of this ship."

"But I am responsible for this ship." Duke Alva looked at the emperor firmly, "I am her navigator, she followed my guidance and crashed into the reef, so I can only do my best to save her , even if you have to use yourself as a sacrifice."

"Now I understand why Philip doesn't like you." Charles V frowned again, the forehead lines on his forehead were as deep as a canyon, "He is a stubborn captain who steers by his own will...he No need for a navigator."

"So he is surrounded by a group of followers and sycophants." The boulder that Duke Alva suppressed his emotions finally cracked a small gap.

"Be careful," the emperor warned, "he's the king now... offending the king won't do you any good, I won't live long, and Philip hasn't been king for long, and now he doesn't like the noise around him, When he has been in power for a long time, he can't bear people who go against his temperament, especially if this person is an old minister of his father. No one likes to be taught like a schoolboy, especially when this person is still the king."

"If His Majesty dismisses me, then I will go to the front line alone on horseback and rush to the enemy's phalanx." Duke Alva said, "At least I have fulfilled my duty for Spain and sacrificed my life and blood. Totally dedicated to her."

"It's like in the novels of chivalry." Charles V laughed. "Ah, my friend, I'm afraid you won't enjoy that kind of luck... You won't die in bed like me, and you won't Rest honorably on the battlefield like those knights, and it will be dagger, poison, or the executioner's ax that will kill you."

Duke Alva opened his mouth wide, and his body twitched in shock.

"I...I don't understand, Your Majesty." He asked suspiciously, with a hint of fear mixed in - the emperor's tone sounded serious, not joking at all, "What do you mean by that? ?”

"Isn't that obvious? You're not the first person in history to be in such a position, and you can easily guess what you're going to face just by looking at how they ended up."

"If the invasion of Britain succeeds, then you will become a hero like Hannibal, the savior of Spain." The emperor raised his eyebrows, "How many of such characters can die well? You will become a threat to the king, and he will Do whatever it takes against you... In fact, if I were king, I would do that too."

"I am loyal to His Majesty." Duke Alva said bluntly.

"The important thing is not your will, but your ability... A loyal subject who has the ability to threaten the king's power is much more dangerous than a traitor who is unable to pose a threat."

Duke Alva lowered his head silently.

"If this invasion fails, then your reputation will probably be discredited. Philip just threw you aside. You may be dismissed. If you are lucky, you can keep your current position, but in any case, your power is not as good as before. Yes, but only while Philip is still alive."

"What do you mean?" Duke Alva seemed completely stunned, his voice seemed to be coming from his chest, low and full of fear.

"How long do you think my son can live?" The emperor shrugged his shoulders. "He is wasting his own life. I don't think he will live long, at least not longer than you. At that time, the one who will rule your fate Who is the person?"

"Prince Don Carlos." Duke Alva murmured.

"You understand now." The emperor yawned.

"I have one more question." Duke Alva looked at the emperor firmly, "Why are you telling me this? His Majesty King Philip and Prince Don Carlos, they are your son and grandson, you told me These, aren't you afraid that I will be against them in order to avoid this situation?"

The emperor burst out laughing suddenly, "Ah, my friend, don't you understand? This is your destiny. What is destiny? It is a wave that mortals cannot resist... Cassandra predicted the fate of the city of Troy, But his brothers laughed it off; Oedipus's father tried to avoid being murdered by his own son, but what he did caused his untimely death. No matter what choice you made, the result was the same: the more you Break free from the shackles of fate, and the net of fate will entangle you more tightly, and if you allow yourself to be manipulated by fate, you will not be able to escape the ending of being dragged into the abyss by it. Life is just a play on the stage. The script has already been written, and we poor little actors can only act according to the script and make the Tibetan gods laugh."

Duke Alva's face lost all color. He wanted to refute something, but a voice deep in his heart told him that what the emperor said was right.

"I heard that you plan to return to the Netherlands." The emperor asked again.

Duke Alva collected his thoughts, "Yes, Your Majesty." His voice sounded rather absent-minded.

"Aren't you going with the fleet?"

"I don't know naval warfare," replied the duke. "My station is in the Netherlands, where I will prepare the Flemish army to cross the sea. When the fleet breaks through the British blockade and reaches Antwerp, I will fight with you." I will never give up the honor of being the first to set foot on British land with the legion that landed on board."

"Then I wish you a smooth journey." The corner of the emperor's mouth curled up slightly, "If there are no accidents, this should be the last time we meet."

The Duke of Alva took Charles V's hand respectfully, and kissed him reverently again.

"You are just like my father." Duke Alva said softly.

"I really hope you are my son." The emperor held Duke Alva's hand behind his back and patted it lightly. The Duke noticed that the emperor's hands were as cold as icicles.

The duke let go of the emperor's hand gently, and he felt the tears begin to roll in his eyes.

"Goodbye, Your Majesty." He bowed deeply to the emperor.

The emperor raised his right hand and waved it lightly, "Goodbye, my friend."

Duke Alva walked out of the room backwards, tears dripping from his eyes, leaving little dark marks on the carpet.

The emperor looked at the closed door and gently closed his eyes.

"The end of our life is hidden behind a thick curtain. This is probably the only grace that God bestows on us ordinary people! Fortunately, there are very few people who can see through that curtain." He sighed softly, "But if you can see through that curtain, then what's the point of all this?"

He turned over and hid his body in the shadow cast by the curtains again.